Colombia’s biggest rebel group says it is ready to talk to the country’s next president to find a political solution to the long-running conflict.

The call for dialogue comes from Alfonso Cano, the leader of the FARC.

But President-elect Juan Manuel Santos may not be listening. He has vowed to continue the hardline security policies of Colombia’s outgoing leader Alvaro Uribe who has led a military crackdown on the group.

For Cano, that would be a mistake. In a video posted on a FARC website, he said previous incoming governments intent on ending the conflict militarily had failed. And there was also a warning that the Marxist movement’s armed campaign would continue if political dialogue was not able to deliver its aims.

The FARC have been pushed back by Uribe’s US-backed military offensive. His political heir Santos takes over the presidency next weekend.

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